Denver trio returns to Volcanic Theatre Pub

Denver, Colorado, trio The Yawpers — known for making huge, punk-inflected Americana noise on two acoustic guitars and a minimalist drum kit — will return to one of its favorite haunts, Volcanic Theatre Pub, on Sunday. This time around, the band supports third studio album “Boy in a Well,” its second release for Bloodshot Records and first concept album. The loose story, about a boy who is abandoned by his mother in a well in World War I-era France, gives the trio’s greasy, slinky blues riffs and stuttering rhythms focus, while frontman Nate Cook uses the framework to shed light on his own demons, from divorce to childhood abuse. It’s a simultaneous step forward and consolidation of strengths — but as with most things this raucous group does, it’s best experienced live.